


Bed, Wed, Behead

by NikMaxwell



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, i can't decide which one to ship so i just shipped all three, these aren't even my only mina ships lol, why do i keep shipping mina with everyone when almost all of them are tragic af idek
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-12
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-01 05:21:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12698211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikMaxwell/pseuds/NikMaxwell
Summary: Most people would have only one girl in their lives, some maybe two, but Mina has three. Unfortunately, life is anything but an easy game of fuck, marry, kill, she realizes.





	1. Bed: Hirai Momo

**Author's Note:**

> I was supposed to finish another fic, but then I got the idea for this one, and it all went downhill from there. (Actually, I was supposed to be studying, but whatever. These Twice ships are ruining my (academic) life, I swear.) Anyway, I'm going to do my best to update this regularly. Enjoy! :D

Mina is beginning to like her days that start like this.

 

As the early morning light mildly illuminates her dim bedroom, Mina wakes up, usually alone, with no sign of the person she went to bed with the previous night. However, there are times when that said person sleeps in instead of slipping away before the break of dawn.

 

Today is one of those rare times.

 

These are dangerous feelings, the relief that comes when Mina finds the other girl beside her and the disappointment that comes when she doesn’t, and she’s gonna have to swallow it all down because this is not part of their arrangement. Myoui Mina and Hirai Momo are fuck buddies, nothing more, nothing less, and developing something emotional from something that’s supposed to be entirely physical would be too much of a cliché.

 

Normally, using her self control isn’t a problem for Mina, but still, she cannot help but lightly brush the other girl’s hair away so she can see Momo’s peaceful, _beautiful_ face. Mina continues running her fingers through Momo’s hair, carefully so she doesn’t get disturbed in her sleep, and only lets her hand fall back onto the bed when she notices Momo’s eyes slowly flutter open.

 

“Good morning, Miss Myoui,” Momo’s husky voice greets so lowly Mina almost doesn’t understand it.

 

“I told you to stop doing that,” Mina frivolously chastises. “It makes me feel like I’m sleeping with a student.”

 

“And? What’s wrong with that?”

 

Mina chuckles, amused at Momo’s ability to joke around even if she literally just woke up. “Ah, you and your weird kinks.”

 

“But you said you love my weird kinks.”

 

“Yeah, well, I say the craziest things just to get you naked,” Mina says, half in humor and half in honesty. “I'd tell you the earth is flat if that will make you take your clothes off.”

 

“I’d get mad about being lied to, but I don’t really blame you,” Momo replies shamelessly. “If I were you, I’d do anything to sleep with me, too.”

 

“Of course you would,” Mina agrees, unsurprised, and Momo just playfully wiggles her eyebrows and tucks her hair at the back of her ear, reminding Mina, “You changed your hair.”

 

“Yeah, I just dyed it yesterday. I was thinking of cutting it short, too, but I’ll just do that once summer comes. Do you like it like this or does blonde suit me better?”

 

Mina hums in thought and regards Momo’s now auburn hair. “You look good either way.”

 

In response, Momo narrows her eyes at Mina. “Do you mean that or are you just saying that because I’m good in bed?”

 

“Can’t it be both?” Mina retorts, and Momo snorts.

 

“What a very bisexual thing to say,” Momo jokes before speaking in a more serious tone. “Anyway, I’m sorry for sleeping in again.”

 

“That’s okay. We slept really late, anyway.” Mina reassures Momo before adding as casually as she can muster, “Are you hungry? What do you want for breakfast?”

 

“You,” Momo answers without missing a beat.

 

Mina tries really hard not to let things like this get to her, but she can only bite the inside of her cheek as she feels her face heat up slightly. They’ve slept together, numerous times for Pete’s sake, so she really doesn’t understand why simple statements like that still get her flustered. Mina rolls her eyes, feigning indifference as she says, “So are you saying no to _actual_ food or?”

 

“I’m not!” Momo says suddenly. _Of course._ “Whatever you want to have is fine with me.”

 

“Alright.”

 

Mina makes a move to get up, but just as she lifts her head from her pillow, Momo wraps both of her arms and her legs around Mina, trapping Mina under the sheets with her.

 

“Momo, I don’t want to be late for my class,” Mina whines.

 

“Mina, you’re a professor, not a student,” Momo reminds her. “It’s okay to be late. Heck, you can even not show up if you want.”

 

“Technically, I _can_ , but that doesn’t mean I should.”

 

“Then, I promise you won’t be late. Just five more minutes, _please_?” Momo begs with a pout.

 

“Fine,” Mina finally relents, and she sees Momo’s pout turns into a wide grin before the girl pulls her even closer and buries her face against Mina’s neck. Their bare bodies are now lying flush against each other, and Mina attempts not to blush at the unexpected contact. “Yah, Hirai, I thought we agreed on no cuddling.”

 

“Yeah, well, I say the craziest things just to get you naked,” Momo counters cheekily, and Mina just sighs.

 

She’s completely, _definitely_ screwed, in more ways than one.


	2. Wed: Son Chaeyoung

Mina _hates_ cooking.

 

Sure, she _knows_ how to, at least to some extent. She can cook basic dishes, but that does not mean that she enjoys doing so. There’s also the glaring fact that it’s impractical to cook since she lives by herself, but that’s beside the point.

 

The point is that Mina _hates_ cooking, and so she doesn’t understand why she’s still sticking to her promise of cooking for Momo even if she can easily take it back and offer to just eat outside.

 

It really does not make sense, but still she slips out of her bedroom to walk straight to her flat’s adjoined kitchen-slash-dining-room. At this point, Momo is still taking a bath because Mina thankfully managed not to accept Momo’s suggestion to shower with her after some arguing and a bit (read: a _lot_ ) of internal struggle. (“You teach business, right? Then you know that it’s economically better to shower together.”)

 

Mina is still rethinking her decisions in life (mostly about cooking, but also a little about showering) when she notices the smell of coffee and toast. She smiles to herself before she even enters the kitchen because there is only one person who could have broken into her house to cook. She continues walking, and once she reaches the culprit, she embraces the intruder from behind and rests her chin on the girl’s shoulder.

 

“Good morning, Chaeyoungie.”

 

“Good morning to you, too,” the other girl greets, and Mina sees that Chaeyoung is currently frying some eggs.

 

“What are you doing here? Your fridge is empty again, isn’t it?”

 

“No, I just randomly showed up here because I missed you and wanted to cook you breakfast,” Chaeyoung halfheartedly claims. When she hears Mina snort, she admits, “Of course, I ran out of food.”

 

“You can crash here whenever you want. I don’t mind. I like it when you cook for me.” Mina says all of that sincerely, then she remembers why she went to the kitchen in the first place, so she adds, “By the way, can you make this breakfast for three?”

 

Mina swears that she feels Chaeyoung freeze against her arms, but that feeling goes away in a split second. Still, the girl’s voice is a little stiff when she replies, “So she stays over now?”

 

“She didn’t mean to,” Mina justifies, even if there really is no need to do so. She finds it almost impressive, how her friend was able to process her ambiguous request so quickly. “How did you know it was her?”

 

“Who else would it be?” Chaeyoung says simply before she taps Mina’s arms with her free hand. “Now, let go of me so I can make more food for your girl.”

 

“She’s not my girl, but thank you.” Mina gives Chaeyoung a quick kiss on the cheek before obeying her friend’s request. “You’re the _best_ best friend ever.”

 

While Chaeyoung is still busy preparing the eggs and toast, Mina sets the table and pours coffee into three mugs. She prepares hers first, then adds the right amount of cream and sugar to Chaeyoung’s drink too since she already knows how the girl likes her coffee. She doesn’t know how Momo likes hers, though, so she just leaves the cream and sugar containers close to Momo’s mug.

 

Mina is already seated when Chaeyoung sets down the food she prepared and almost jumps in surprise when she hears Mina squeal in delight at the mere sight of the eggs. “Umm, Mina, they’re just eggs.”

 

“But you make the _perfect_ eggs,” Mina defends.

 

Chaeyoung just shakes her head in amusement as she sits across from Mina. “Seriously? How long has it been since you had a home-cooked meal?”

 

“Well,” Mina starts to reply, not even bothering to wait for Momo before reaching for a piece of toast and taking a bite, “how long has it been since you moved out?”

 

“Ah, why am I not surprised?”

 

Mina would be offended, but she knows Chaeyoung has a point. Instead of defending herself, she decides to take a more practical approach. “I miss living with you. Why can’t you just move back here?”

 

“You mean aside from the fact that you scarred me for life when I came home once to find you naked with another woman on the couch?” Chaeyoung asks nonchalantly while on the other hand Mina almost spits out her coffee. “Honestly, I think we’re getting too old for this roommate thing, anyway. We’re not in college anymore. We have to learn to be independent, even if I do miss your free rent. And your full fridge. And your large spare room. And your fast WiFi. And your wide TV.”

 

“And your pretty housemate,” Mina interrupts haphazardly, adding herself to Chaeyoung’s seemingly endless list.

 

“Sure,” Chaeyoung says flatly. “ _But_ just because you miss something doesn’t mean you can’t live without it.”

 

“But I _can’t_ live without you,” Mina insists, but Chaeyoung only rolls her eyes.

 

“I moved out like a month ago, Mina, stop being so dramatic.”

 

“It was a _very_ long month. I feel so alone.”

 

“Then get yourself a dog,” Chaeyoung suggests. “Or a cat. Or a wife.”

 

“Why can’t I just marry you?” Mina proposes.

 

“You can when we’re 40 and still single. We made a pact, remember?” Chaeyoung reminds Mina.

 

“Okay, but why can’t we just do it now?” Mina half-jokes, although she is also half-serious because she really misses having her (more responsible) roommate around.

 

“Because I’m perfect and you don’t deserve me unless I don’t have any other choice anymore,” Chaeyoung answers so casually that Mina isn’t sure if she’s just kidding or if she actually meant that. Mina is about to ask Chaeyoung that when another person speaks first.

 

“Hey, Mina, is this the only casual wear you own?” Momo says, walking into the dining room clad in denim shorts and a faded shirt with a boy group’s name written across the chest.

 

“I _do_ have casual clothes,” Mina argues as Momo sits beside her. “You just didn’t look well enough.”

 

“I’ve looked through your _entire_ closet!” Momo claims. “And, umm, Mina, I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but by casual I meant crop tops and t-shirts and hoodies, not _blouses_.”

 

Mina crosses her arms and glares at Momo. “You know what? It’s funny how you never seem to have any complaint about my clothes when you’re taking them o—”

 

Chaeyoung clears her throat, reminding the other two that they’re not alone, and Mina blushes when she realizes what she was about to say. She clears her throat, too, before she says, “I don’t think you guys have been properly introduced. Momo, this is Chaeyoung, my best friend.”

 

“Oh, nice to meet you,” Momo smiles and greets as she bows her head a little.

 

“You, too,” Chaeyoung says back before adding, “I must say, you look better when you’re fully clothed.”

 

For the second time today, Mina chokes on her coffee. It was okay when Chaeyoung references the incident and it’s just the two of them, but it’s an entirely different matter now that she said it in front of Momo.

 

Thankfully, Momo doesn’t seem fazed about it. She just blinks before she answers, “Really? That’s not what Mina tells m—” Chaeyoung doesn’t get to hear the rest of Momo’s reply because Mina suddenly stuffs a piece of toast into Momo’s mouth.

 

“You’re hungry, right?” Mina asks poor Momo who is now removing the rest of the toast that she cannot possibly chew away from her mouth. “Eat up. Chaeyoung prepared all this.”

 

Momo bows at Chaeyoung’s direction again, and once she has swallowed the bread Mina has so kindly stuffed into her mouth, she says, “Thank you, Chaeyoung.”

 

On the other hand, Chaeyoung pays no mind to Momo’s politeness and busies herself with the backpack she has beside her. She takes out a pen and a notepad and flips a page open before turning her attention back to Momo. “So, Momo, right? Momo…”

 

“Hirai,” Momo supplies.

 

“Hirai Momo,” Chaeyoung repeats as she scribbles that on the very top of the page. “How old are you again?”

 

Momo looks at Mina to silently ask her what’s going on, but Mina is too busy looking suspiciously at Chaeyoung, so Momo just hesitantly answers, “Uhh, 27?”

 

“Hmm, not a minor, check,” Chaeyoung says as she jots down the number one and a check beside it before following that with, “Question number 2, how many sexual partners do you have as of the moment?”

 

At that point, Mina is not only sternly glaring across the table but also verbally warns with a low and dangerous voice, “ _Son Chaeyoung_.”

 

On the other hand, Momo casually answers anyway. “Right now? One.” She jerks her head slightly to gesture towards Mina, implying who that ‘one’ is even if Chaeyoung already knows that.

 

“ _Mhm_ ,” Chaeyoung hums in disbelief, writing nothing down and immediately jumping to the next question. “And how many sexual partners have you ever had in total?”

 

Mina is dumbfounded Chaeyoung’s brazenness and just sits there with her mouth open while Momo replies, “Three.”

 

Chaeyoung narrows her eyes at Momo in suspicion. “Three including Mina?”

 

“Three including Mina,” Momo confirms before she takes a spoonful of egg. She’s been answering all of Chaeyoung’s questions so nonchalantly, like she’s just having a normal conversation with a normal person about a normal topic like the weather or something. When she sees Chaeyoung's skeptic gaze, she adds, “I’m serious. It’s just her and my two exes.”

 

Chaeyoung nods and mutters, “if you say so,” although both Mina and Momo can see that she’s written a question mark next to items 2 and 3 on her list. She then writes the number 4 below that and continues with her shameless interrogation. “When was the last time you got tested for sexually transmi—”

 

“Okay, that’s enough,” Mina firmly intervenes, looking extremely furious. “Chaeyoung, this really isn’t necessary.”

 

“Hey, it’s okay,” Momo says as she places a hand on Mina’s shoulder to ease the tension. “Your friend has some legit concerns.”

 

Mina then turns her glare away from Chaeyoung to direct it towards Momo instead. “Are you seriously siding with her?”

 

“What? I think it’s sweet that you have someone looking out for you.” Momo reasons with Mina before turning towards Chaeyoung. “And don’t worry, I swear I’m clean.”

 

Chaeyoung is surprised that Momo is defending her, too, and it shows in the way she just stares blankly before she recovers and answers, “Good.” She closes the notepad and shoots the pen into its spring before putting her things back in her backpack. “Well, that’s all I have for now. I have to do a background check first before I can ask additional questions.”

 

“You’re very thorough, aren’t you?” Momo verbally observes. “Would it help if you had my contact number?”

 

“I umm—yeah,” Chaeyoung says timidly, still surprised that Momo is being so cooperative with her weird antics. “Thanks.”

 

“Sure thing,” Momo says with a wide grin as she hands Chaeyoung the business card she took out of her wallet.

 

Chaeyoung scans the card and notices, “You’re a dance instructor?”

 

“Yup. How about you? What do you do?”

 

“I’m a freelance artist slash writer slash musician,” Chaeyoung recites before smiling at Momo for the first time. “It’s nice to know another person in the art field.”

 

“Right?” Momo agrees excitedly before the two launches into a profound conversation about stuff that Mina knows absolutely nothing about.

 

For the next few minutes, the pair continues talking like they forgot that Mina even exists until Momo checks her watch and curses. “I have to run,” she says, standing up as she (barely) manages to stuff the remaining half of her bread she’s holding into her mouth. She then washes it down by chugging all of her remaining coffee before dramatically setting the mug down the table and wiping her upper lip. She has already started walking out of the dining area as she continues, “I have to go check on Jana. I’ll call you later!”

 

Mina hasn’t been able to call out her answer yet when she hears the swinging of the door followed by a soft click, signaling Momo’s departure.

 

“So, when she said ‘I’ll call _you_ later,’ does she mean you or me?”  Chaeyoung jokes and laughs at herself before her expression suddenly turns serious. “Wait, who’s Jana? Oh my God, Momo’s not married, is she?”

 

“Don’t be silly. Jana’s her dog,” Mina clarifies.

 

At that, Chaeyoung’s eyes dramatically widen. “Oh no. This is worse than I thought.”

 

Unfazed, Mina simply narrows her eyes and takes a sip of her coffee. “What?”

 

“She _loves_ dogs,” Chaeyoung answers, as if that’s enough of an explanation.

 

“… So?”

 

“ _So_ that makes her more attractive in your book,” Chaeyoung further elaborates, albeit still insufficiently that Mina decides to just guess what her friend means.

 

“Are you worried about me?” Mina asks, and Chaeyoung doesn’t nod in response but gives her a look that says ‘isn’t it obvious?’, making Mina scoff. “Do you really think I fall in love that easily?” Mina looks at her friend expectantly, but Chaeyoung doesn’t even bother answering that, either, and simply goes back to finishing her breakfast. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”

 

Chaeyoung sighs as she pushes herself and her chair away from the table. “I haven’t decided whether to tell you the truth or to tell you what you want to hear,” she tells Mina before standing up and turning away to bring her plate and mug to the sink.

 

“Nice to know that you have _so_ much faith in me,” Mina calls out, her voice dripping with sarcasm, making Chaeyoung go back to facing her and walk back closer to the table.  

 

“What do you want me to say? That I fully believe that you won’t fall for Momo? That you guys won’t eventually ruin your friendship because of unwanted but uncontrollable feelings?”

 

“Yes!” Mina exclaims as she stands up to bring her plate to the sink, too. “That’s exactly what I want you to say!”

 

Chaeyoung sighs and crosses her arms. “Mina, you know I love you but—”

 

“Stop!” Mina interjects, using her hand to cover Chaeyoung’s mouth. “Don’t say anything else. Let ‘Mina, you know I love you’ be the last thing I hear from you today, okay?” She waits for Chaeyoung to nod before she removes her hold.

 

“Okay, but are you sure you don’t want it to be ‘Go prepare for work, Mina, I’ll wash the dishes?’” Chaeyoung poses as an alternative.

 

“For real? Oh my God, thank you for your existence,” Mina says as she wraps her arms around Chaeyoung’s neck and peppers her face with kisses.

 

“Go now before I change my mind!” Chaeyoung threatens, making Mina give her one last kiss on the nose before letting go and running back to her room.

 

The mere thought that she has someone like Chaeyoung in her life is enough to put Mina in a very good mood that makes her whistle the entire time she got ready until she's walking out of her flat and even all throughout her entire car ride to work. She wishes nothing will ever change that, and she’ll do _everything_ to make sure of that, but she can only hope that fate will remain on her side, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad I finished this just in time for Likey's fifth win! Anyway, back to my real-life responsibilities I go. :))


	3. Behead: Im Nayeon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Minayeon stories (and subplots) I've written so far are all funny, so why is everyone assuming that the Minayeon chapter is gonna be angsty? I'm not saying it won't be, but I’m just asking. =)) Is it because of the word ‘behead’? Ah, well, anyway, here it is, and I’m sorry for the partially intentional delay.

Back when she was still an undergrad, Mina came across this Stress Scale in one of her minor classes. It quantifies the stress level of certain events in one’s life in terms of something called “Life Change Units”, and basically, the more points you earn all-in-all, the more likely you are to become ill in the near future because of the stress. The scale accounts for 43 life events in total, including divorce (which is equivalent to 73 points), death of a family member (63 points) or a close friend (37 points), and getting fired from work (47 points).

 

Now, Mina did not major in Psychology or anything, but she thinks this scale is absolute bullshit simply because she cannot find the most stressful part of her life among those 43 “life-changing” events, which is working with her ex.

 

Well, she can count it as “major change in working conditions” but she sure as hell knows that this _tragedy_ she has to endure is definitely worth more than 20 points. After all, it makes Mina dread work so much that the happiness she acquired from her night with Momo and her morning with Chaeyoung has all been rendered null before she even enters the faculty room.

 

It hasn’t even been a year since Im Nayeon started working in the same university and the same freaking department as Mina, and yet she has already made the workplace a living hell for the poor girl. As if that wasn’t enough, they were even assigned to adjacent cubicles, and _wow_ , what did Mina ever do to deserve this rotten luck?

 

It’s not that Nayeon is unpleasant towards Mina. In fact, she has been doing the complete opposite of being mean and has been acting so horribly sweet like they’re still together, and that’s what makes Mina sick.

 

Within her first week at work, Nayeon has made sure that everyone in their department knew about their past relationship which, _okay_ , is technically true, but for Pete’s sake, they were still in high school back when it happened. If Mina has _recently_ made huge mistakes in terms of her romantic life, of course she would have had made even worse misjudgments when she was younger.

 

No one cares about Mina’s reasons and efforts to invalidate her alleged connection with Nayeon, however. On the contrary, her state of denial has made things worse for her and encouraged her colleagues tease her about it even more, like the time they all addressed her as “Miss Im Mina” for one entire month.

 

Thankfully, no one calls her that anymore now. Well, no one except Nayeon, that is. What makes it more annoying is that Nayeon does all of this not because she still likes Mina, nor is Nayeon interested in rekindling whatever it is that they once had. She just does it because she likes embarrassing Mina in front of everyone and because she knows that what is mere teasing for her is absolute _torture_ to Mina.

 

Well, sure, if Mina would be completely honest with herself, which rarely happens, she would admit that torment is not the only thing that she gets from Nayeon’s special treatment. For example, she always has free coffee waiting for her at her desk when she arrives because Nayeon buys her one every morning. However, most of what Nayeon says and does are still totally unnecessary if not considerably inappropriate, so Mina’s hatred towards the girl easily overpowers her gratitude.

 

And so Mina always makes her time at her workstation as brief as possible whenever Nayeon is present, like this very moment when she doesn’t even bother sitting on her chair and just opts to stand while she arranges the stuff she needs for her first class. However, Mina is half-convinced that Nayeon has some sort of radar that just pings whenever she’s around, so it’s not surprising that before she even reaches her desk, Nayeon is already peeking at her from the next cubicle and cheerfully greeting her with, “Good morning, _honey_.”

 

“There’s _nothing_ good about my morning,” Mina replies flatly, but then she remembers that that is only half-true, so she adds, “at least, not anymore.”

 

Nayeon is already used to Mina’s early-morning snide remarks, so she simply ignores them and says, “It’s my turn to order lunch for all of us later. I’m supposed to choose, but I’ll let you decide. What are you craving?”

 

“Just some peace and quiet, please,” Mina quickly retorts even if she knows that Nayeon wouldn’t give her that anyway.

 

She sees in her peripheral vision that Nayeon is opening her mouth to continue talking, which just proves her point, but before Nayeon can get a word out, Mina finally finishes preparing her things, so she rapidly grabs her bag and her daily cup of coffee from Nayeon and walks out of the faculty room.

 

The thing is Mina _really_ loves her job, even if college kids have the worst attention span and half of her class is practically dead before she even enters the classroom in the first place. Having gone through the same experience, Mina sympathizes with them though, so she just does her best to teach her subject well.

 

For the most part, she is able to actually enjoy being a teacher, and by “the most part,” that means all the times when she doesn’t have to deal with Nayeon’s presence.

 

Unfortunately, tonight isn’t part of "the most part.”

 

Usually, Mina would have all her work done before Friday comes so that her weekends are work-free and stress-free. However, someone by the name of Hirai Momo has made a habit of ruining her routine of being productive during weeknights, and so Mina has to stay a little late tonight to finish grading the papers which she would have had already finished checking beforehand if Momo weren’t so distracting and persuasive.

 

She figured she would be alone if she went overtime since it’s Friday, and she did have the faculty room all to herself for a while until Nayeon barges in, having traded her work clothes for a hoodie and jeans. She seems just as surprised to see Mina, and she removes the earphones plugged into her ears before saying, “You’re still here?”

 

“Yeah, I’m just grading some papers,” Mina says as she thinks _oh well,_ at least Nayeon’s presence will motivate her to speed up her checking so she can get out of here as soon as possible. “Why are _you_ still here, anyway?”

 

“I took a walk,” Nayeon explains. “I stroll around the campus at night sometimes to relax. You should try it.”

 

Mina just hums in response and waits for Nayeon to leave her all alone again, except she doesn’t. Instead of heading out, Nayeon sits in front of her desk, puts one of her earbuds back on, and slowly spins her chair around and around, distracting Mina and making her ask, “What are you doing?”

 

“Waiting for you,” Nayeon says nonchalantly, and Mina just scoffs.

 

“No, seriously, why are you still here?”

 

“Does it look like I’m the type of person who has plans on Friday night?” Nayeon asks, and before Mina can reply that _yes,_ that seems about right, she puts up her hand to stop Mina. “Actually, don’t answer that.”

 

Mina then waits for Nayeon to give another explanation, but when she doesn’t get any, she just directs her focus back on her work.

 

She does get to focus for a while, that is before Nayeon rolls her chair over until she’s in Mina’s cubicle, looking over the girl’s shoulder as she asks, “Can I help?”

 

“Umm,” Mina hesitates. “You don’t have to.”

 

“I know I don’t, but I was asking if I _can_ ,” Nayeon deadpans. “Did you put an essay part?”

 

Mina scoffs. “So my students can bullshit their way to having partial points? Of course not.”

 

“Good point,” Nayeon agrees. “Since these are all objective anyway, just give me a guide and I’ll help you check.”

 

Nayeon doesn’t even wait for Mina’s go signal before grabbing half of the stack of papers in front of Mina. She holds out her hand expectantly, and Mina figures there’s no use in arguing, especially since having Nayeon’s assistance would help her get home earlier, so she hands Nayeon her copy of the answer key since she’s already got it memorized anyway.

 

In response, Nayeon gives her a triumphant smile and grabs one of the pens from the holder on Mina’s desk. She then places her phone on the table so that it’s between the two of them, puts one of the earbuds in her right ear and the other in Mina’s left, then immediately gets to work.

 

Mina knows that what Nayeon just did was actually unnecessary considering they are the only ones in the room, and Nayeon could have unplugged the earphones and played her music as loud as she wanted. It’s a simple gesture, but it also brings back some memories from her past, _their_ past, that Mina would rather forget. She shrugs those thoughts away, however, because now is not the time for reminiscing.

 

_Work first, reflections on her past later._

 

They do finish the work in record time, and when Nayeon puts her hand up to give Mina a high-five, Mina relents but not without playfully rolling her eyes first. Nayeon waits as Mina arranges her things, and they step out of the room together.

 

As they walk, Mina notices that the corridors are literally deserted, and okay, is she really the only one who doesn’t have Friday night plans? The dim, empty hallways have an eerie feel to them, too, so Mina walks a little closer to Nayeon than she normally would.

 

It doesn’t help alleviate her slight uneasiness when Nayeon suddenly says, “Have you heard the rumors about the ghost of a student haunting this building?”

 

“Yeah, can we talk about this some other time?” Mina replies. “Like, preferably during daytime and when there’s other people around?”

 

Maybe she should have thought twice before indirectly admitting that she’s scared, considering Nayeon has made it her life’s mission to annoy the hell out of Mina. She only realizes her mistake once Nayeon mischievously grins and asks, “Do you remember that time we watched The Grudge?”

 

Unfortunately, Mina _does_ remember, even if that happened too long ago. That was back when her friendship with Nayeon was still relatively new and the girl invited her over while her parents weren’t home.

 

It was the first and only time they’ve ever watched a horror movie together, and Mina remembers every damn second of it, which isn’t a good thing for her to recall right now, so she exclaims, “Stop it!”

 

Nayeon laughs before she assures, “I’m not gonna scare you. I’m just reminiscing.” She lets out a sigh and moves her gaze away from Mina before continuing, “You got scared out of your wits. We weren’t even together yet back then but I remember how you clung onto me like we already were.”

 

“Oh my God,” Mina groans. “Please don’t remind me. That was so embarrassing.”

 

“It’s okay,” Nayeon says with one last chuckle before her expression turns somewhat contemplative. “I don’t think I ever told you this but that was the moment I knew I liked you. I’ve always been a very touchy person, but you were the only one who ever made my heart flutter like that.”

 

Mina doesn’t know what to say about that, but it doesn’t seem like Nayeon expected her to say anything either, so they just keep walking quietly until they eventually made it out of the building and reached the parking lot.

 

Their cars are parked just a few meters away from each other, but Nayeon walks Mina to her car anyway, and before she goes in, Mina lets herself have a rare moment of sincerity towards Nayeon and speaks, “Thank you. For helping me and staying with me.”

 

“No problem,” Nayeon says just as genuinely, and _damn, why can’t Nayeon be this bearable all the time?_ “Oh, and thank you, too.”

 

“For what?” Mina asks as she wonders what she could have possibly done for Nayeon to thank her.

 

“For being my first love,” Nayeon answers simply, and with that, she gives Mina one last smile, walks towards and into her car, and drives away without another word nor another look.

 

_What the actual f—_

 

Mina blinks and shakes her head. As she drives home, she realizes that she is actually capable of tolerating Nayeon, although her behavior towards Nayeon is also dependent on Nayeon’s behavior towards her. She can only hope that Nayeon would be as tolerable tomorrow as she was tonight.

 

(Mina highly doubts it.)


	4. Rewind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to comment anything! I want to know what you guys think since I'm honestly going blindly into this one myself.
> 
> Oh, and enjoy! :)

**_ Six years ago _ **

 

College is truly the worst, or at least it is for Mina. Sure, she manages to keep her grades stellar, but just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean you have to like it. There’s just too much that their profs expect their students to learn—lengthy technical terms, complicated mathematical formulae, and other trivial information that they’re probably just going to forget right after their exams. As if those weren’t enough, students are supposed to take a whole lot of minor subjects, too, and while some of them are actually interesting if not at least tolerable, Mina finds the rest either unnecessarily difficult or absolutely dreary.

 

History falls on the last category mainly because the teacher’s voice is monotonous as heck and because its timeslot falls on the late afternoon when everyone is already drained from all the classes they have to attend beforehand. Technically, she doesn’t have to go to class since attendance isn’t required in this course, but Mina tries to be a good student, so she attends and struggles to stay awake every single time no matter how hard that may be.

 

(The prof even lectures with his eyes closed, and Mina doesn’t know if his eyes are just like that or if he’s just as sleepy as his whole class is.)

 

In order to stay alert, Mina tries to take down notes during the first few meetings even if there’s no need to do so because the instructor sends all his slides to their emails anyway. As the semester goes on, however, Mina loses the motivation to do that too, and instead, she just watches her seatmate doodle on her notebook during every lecture.

 

Unlike the class lessons, this girl’s drawings are actually fascinating, even the ones that Mina doesn’t fully understand. Sometimes, she sketches characters that Mina somehow recognizes, like those from Harry Potter (though she only got that because of the robes and the wands) and those from Star Wars (though she only got that because of the lightsabers). Other times, she sketches ones that Mina presumes are from movies or television shows that she’s never seen, but Mina appreciates them all anyway.

 

Mina loves it the most when her classmate draws scenes from real life, though. For some reason, she can tell the difference between the girl’s sketches of mere characters and those of real people because the girl makes them so… _real_. There are times when other signs make it obvious that she’s drawing a real person though, like when she drew their professor and perfected his thick mustache and the way his eyes were closed. (Mina had to cover her mouth to keep herself from laughing loudly, not because she’s afraid that her professor might kick her out of the class since she knows he doesn’t care anyway, but because her seatmate can’t know that she’s creepily watching her draw.)

 

Right now, Mina can tell that the scene is from real life, too, as her seatmate draws a table with a girl who is sitting behind it and is seemingly writing something, and then she draws another girl on the side whose eyes are focused on the thing that the first girl is writing and—

 

 _Holy shit,_ the girl is drawing _them_ , Mina realizes, so for the rest of the period, she buries her face in her hands and hopes that the ground can magically swallow her whole.

 

She only looks up when she feels a tap on her shoulder, and when she looks around, the other students are already starting to leave the room, meaning the class was dismissed without her noticing.

 

“What’s your name?” Mina hears from her left, making her turn towards her seatmate who was the source of both the question and the tap on her shoulder.

 

“M-Mina,” she replies with a stutter, still embarrassed at being caught watching, although it doesn’t seem like the other girl minds, judging from the smile on her face.

 

“I’m Chaeyoung,” the girl replies as she signs her name on the bottom part of her sketch—which is now a lot more detailed than when Mina last took a peek at it—along with the date. Chaeyoung then rips the page off her sketchbook and turns to Mina to ask, “Do you want to keep this?”

 

In response, Mina nods and reaches for the paper that Chaeyoung hands her. “T-thanks.”

 

“No problem,” Chaeyoung replies. “I’m sorry if it doesn’t look a lot like you, by the way. Your face is too beautiful, and I’m afraid I’m not talented enough to give it the justice it deserves.”

 

At that, Mina blushes before she protests, “Don’t say that! You are really talented!”

 

“Oh, so you _can_ talk without stuttering,” Chaeyoung teases, making Mina even more mortified. “Anyway, if you like my drawings that much, you should know that I take requests. You’ll have to pay for them though.”

 

“Ah, so this was a free trial?” Mina kids, holding up the sketch in her hand.

 

“Something like that,” Chaeyoung confirms. “It’s also my way of saying, ‘I see you’re trying to be subtle about it, but I know you watch me draw and I’m totally fine with it.’”

 

“Okay, noted,” Mina says as she laughs a little. “Thanks again, Chaeyoung.”

 

“You’re welcome,” Chaeyoung replies as she swings her backpack onto her right shoulder.  “Anyway, I have to run. See you on Thursday?”

 

Mina nods, and as Chaeyoung starts walking away, she calls out, “Yeah, see you!”

 

On the other hand, Mina takes her time in arranging her things since she doesn’t have anywhere to go after her last class. She stares at the drawing for a while before placing it in her binder, so it won’t get folded. It’s the first thing that she brings out when she gets to her dorm room, and she tapes it on the wall above her study table.

 

Not that she has any intention of studying tonight or anything. Besides, she’s made a new friend today so, in some aspect, she can already count this day as productive. Instead of doing anything academic, she makes a list of some requests she can ask from Chaeyoung. Mina figures she should make the most out of their friendship since it probably won’t last until after the semester ends.

 

* * *

 

**_ Present day _ **

****

“Why are we still friends again?” Chaeyoung asks, half in jest but also half in seriousness, as she crosses her arms and judges the person in front of her who’s wrapped in a blanket.

 

“Because even if I’m needy, you still love me,” Mina replies with a sniff, and Chaeyoung can only tut and shake her head.

 

“You’re such a baby, you know that?”

 

As she leans further against the couch she’s sitting on, Mina pouts. “Can you please save the insults for when I’m not sick anymore?”

 

“Alright, alright,” Chaeyoung relents as she sits next to Mina. “Are you sure you don’t want any soup?”

 

“No, I’ll probably just throw up if I eat anyway,” Mina declines. She pulls Chaeyoung closer to her and hands her one end of her blanket so they can both be wrapped in it. She rests her head against the girl’s shoulder before adding, “I just want to cuddle with you while watching really sad films.”

 

As she wraps her right arm around Mina’s waist, Chaeyoung asks, “Won’t you get even more sick though?”

 

“Of the movies or of you?”

 

Chaeyoung just rolls her eyes, deciding to let this one pass since her friend is sick. Instead of countering, she settles with, “Just tell me if you need anything else, okay?”

 

In response, Mina nods, figuring if Chaeyoung’s not gonna see it, she’ll still feel the answer against her shoulder. Finally, she presses play on the remote control, starting the movie.

 

She always tries to make the most of her moments alone with Chaeyoung because, as cheesy as it sounds, she misses her even when the girl is with her. Sure, Mina still sees her a lot, but there’s a big difference between spending a lot of time with someone and spending every waking moment with someone.

 

So, Mina leans further against her friend and makes herself comfortable as the two of them enjoy the movie in silence until Chaeyoung suddenly says, “So you missed work today?”

 

“Yup,” Mina answers, her eyes focused on the screen as she reads the subtitles, so she won’t miss a single line even if they’re talking. “I made the mistake of texting Nayeon that I won’t make it today instead of informing our head directly, and she spent the whole morning trying to contact me.”

 

“You texted Nayeon?!” Chaeyoung asks in surprise, fully aware of their whole story. “You were that delirious this morning?”

 

“My fever was kinda high when I woke up,” Mina recounts and concurs. “It’s like I only came to my senses when I saw her name flashing on my screen the first time she called.”

 

“Is that why you turned your phone off? I couldn’t reach you since this afternoon.”

 

“Yeah, I turned it off as soon as I texted you to come.”

 

“Correction: _begged_ me to come.”

 

Mina scoffs. “Excuse me, I’ll have you know that I never had to _beg_ for someone to _come_.”

 

At that, Chaeyoung removes her arm from around Mina’s waist and jokingly recoils away from the girl. “Spare me the details of your sex life, please.”

 

“What?” Mina says with a chuckle as she tries to pull Chaeyoung back closer. “I’m just saying that the only time I ever beg is when someone asks me to.”

 

“Seriously, if you don’t stop, I’m gonna leave,” Chaeyoung replies, as she swats Mina’s arms away. Just as Mina is about to yield, the doorbell rings, making both of them turn towards the door. “Are you expecting anyone?”

 

Mina shakes her head. “Nope,” she answers negatively, but after giving it a second thought, she adds, “Well, Momo was supposed to drop by tonight, but I already told her I’m sick.”

 

“Alright, pause it,” Chaeyoung commands, gesturing towards the TV before standing up. “I’m gonna go get the door.”

 

As Chaeyoung goes towards the door, Mina grabs the remote and follows the girl’s order. When her friend walks back into the living room, she’s followed by—

 

“Momo? What are you doing here?”

 

“Your phone is off, so I came here to check up on you,” the girl explains as she sits on Mina’s right side and Chaeyoung sits on her left. She holds up a plastic bag and says, “I brought you soup and some bread.”

 

Instead of thanking her, Mina goes with, “You didn’t have to do that.”

 

“I know but— _ugh,”_ Momo abruptly exclaims in disgust, distracted by the picture on the TV screen. “How are you supposed to get well if you’re watching a Nicholas Sparks film?!”

 

“Right?” Chaeyoung agrees from the other side of the sofa. “That’s exactly what I told her.”

 

“What? It’s tragically good!” Mina defends herself as she uses the remote to resume the film.

 

“It’s tragically _straight_ , is what it is,” Momo counters, and Chaeyoung stretches her arm in front of Mina to give Momo a high-five.

 

“Stop ganging up on me!” Mina whines. “I’m sick!”

 

“We’re just telling you the truth,” Chaeyoung shrugs.

 

“Yeah, it’s for your own good,” Momo agrees, then takes out a covered plastic bowl and a plastic spoon from the bag she brought before setting it back on the coffee table. She takes the lid off the bowl and tells Mina, “Here, eat the soup while it’s still warm.”

 

Although Mina doesn’t have the appetite for it, she lets Momo feed her. The girl already went through all the trouble of buying her food and coming here, so Mina figures refusing would be impolite.

 

“I thought you didn’t want soup,” Chaeyoung reminds Mina as she swallows another spoonful.

 

“I only said that because I didn’t want you to cook anymore,” Mina explains, turning towards Chaeyoung to see her frowning slightly. “If I don’t eat this, that’ll be a waste.”

 

“Sure,” Chaeyoung verbally agrees, although her tone says otherwise. “Okay, well, now you already have someone to take care of you, and frankly I’m not in the mood to be the third wheel tonight, so maybe I should—”

 

The sound of the doorbell interrupts Chaeyoung again, making her continue with, “Okay, seriously, are you hosting a party or what?”

 

Defensively, Mina puts her hands up and insists, “I didn’t invite anyone, I swear!”

 

Sensing the tension between the other two, Momo volunteers to get the door only to walk back into the living room with—

 

“Nayeon?!” Mina exclaims, taking in the sight of her dear, _dear_ co-worker who’s still in her work attire.

 

“I’ve been trying to reach you for _hours_ ,” Nayeon complains as she collapses onto the couch, taking Momo’s place beside Mina. At that, Momo shrugs and sits on the armrest instead, while Chaeyoung remains standing with her arms folded. “Is your phone off?”

 

“My phone is off _because_ you’ve been trying to reach me for hours,” Mina clarifies frankly. “How’d you even know where I live?”

 

“What, like it’s hard? We work at the same place, Mina, of course I—”

 

“I wasn’t actually asking for an explanation. It was my way of rhetorically saying, ‘ _Why the hell are you in my house, Nayeon_?’”

 

“Can you please not be mean to me right now? I’m really exhausted,” Nayeon says gloomily before holding up a plastic bag of her own though it’s smaller than Momo’s. “I just came to give you some medicine. You won’t tell me how you got sick, so I just bought a few of everything—”

 

“Great, now you have a nurse _and_ a doctor,” Chaeyoung sharply interrupts. “I think I can leave now.”

 

At that, Mina stands way too quickly, making her a little dizzy that she had to grab Chaeyoung to regain her balance before she can say, “Wait, don’t go!”

 

“It’s okay, I have some work to do anyway,” Chaeyoung reasons, as she maneuvers Mina so that the girl sits back down on the sofa. Then, she directs her gaze towards Nayeon and Momo as she resumes, “You and you, keep an eye on Mina, okay? Don’t you dare leave her alone, or I’ll burn your houses down, got it?”

 

Chaeyoung is way smaller than the other two, meaning Momo and Nayeon do not have to take the other girl’s threat seriously, but they synchronously nod at her just the same. Satisfied, Chaeyoung turns and walks out of the living room, but backtracks before she gets to the door and grabs one of Nayeon’s arms. “On second thought, you’re coming with me.”

 

“Eh?! Why?!” Nayeon protests, but Chaeyoung is apparently way stronger than she looks, so she still manages to pull the older girl up to stand.

 

“You’re Im Nayeon, right?” Chaeyoung asks, for she’s only ever heard stories about the girl but never had the chance to meet her before. She waits for Nayeon’s confirmation before continuing, “Having you around will only make Mina feel worse, so yes, you’re leaving, too.”

 

“But you said I was gonna be Mina’s doctor!” Nayeon argues, as she tries to pull herself back towards the couch.

 

“Momo, you can handle this, right?” Chaeyoung asks to which Momo nods. “Good. Take good care of Mina, okay?” After getting another nod from Momo, Chaeyoung turns to Mina. “You, text me and update me about how you’re feeling.” When Mina nods in compliance too, she finally gets back to Nayeon. “Okay, now that everything’s settled, you, let’s get going.”

 

“W-wait!” Nayeon cries, trying to go against Chaeyoung, but to no avail. When Nayeon looks at Mina and Momo for help, they just watch as Chaeyoung drags her out, with the latter giving her a rather triumphant wave before the door closes.

 

From her position on the armrest, Momo slides back to sit beside Mina and gestures towards the TV. “Okay, seriously, are you sure you don’t want to watch another movie?”

 

Mina shakes her head slowly as she wraps herself back into her blanket. “Just turn it off. I don’t think I’m in the mood to watch anymore.”

 

Sensing the change in Mina’s mood, Momo takes her suggestion back. “Hey, I was just kidding. We can just watch this.”

 

“No, it’s fine,” Mina insists, although the way she’s smiling so dejectedly makes Momo think otherwise. “I’m just really tired. I think I should go to sleep.”

 

“Oh,” Momo says just as despondently. “Yeah, okay. You should rest.”

 

“You should go home and rest, too.”

 

“I can’t leave you. Chaeyoung will burn my house down if I do, remember?”

 

“No, I promise she won’t,” Mina guarantees, but Momo doesn’t look anything close to being convinced. “I’m just gonna sleep anyway. I’ll text you guys in the morning if I need anything.”

 

“Okay, then,” Momo accepts hesitantly. “If you want me gone that badly…”

 

“No, it’s not that!” Mina claims. “I just don’t want to bother you anymore, really.”

 

“And I don’t want to bother you anymore, either,” Momo says too but a lot more sadly. “I’ll just help you to your room, then I’ll get going.”

 

“No, it’s fine. I can walk by mysel—”

 

Before Mina can finish protesting, Momo suddenly picks her up from the couch, making Mina yelp and wrap her arms around Momo’s neck as the girl carries her to her room.

 

After she carefully sits Mina down on the bed, Momo says a quick “ _wait here_ ” and runs back out of the room. When she comes back, she’s skillfully holding a box of tissues, a pitcher of water, a glass, the plastic full of bread that she brought, and the one that Nayeon brought as well.

 

“So you won’t have to walk out of your room if you need them,” Momo explains as she places all the items on Mina’s nightstand except the bag that Nayeon left behind which she peers into instead. “Oh wow, your friend is really organized.”

 

“Okay, one, please don’t call Nayeon ‘ _my friend,_ ’” Mina starts. “Two, did you just call Nayeon organized? What are you saying?”

 

Mina knows exactly what Nayeon’s work desk looks like, and she’d call it anything but organized. Maybe she just misheard Momo?

 

“Yeah, look, your fr— _Nayeon_ labelled everything,” Momo insists, as she takes out the bag’s contents which are small, transparent packets containing tablets and are all labelled with words like “ _for fever_ ”, “ _for cold_ ”, and “ _for flu.”_

 

“That’s…” Mina pauses, thinking of an appropriate adjective, before finally settling with, “weird.”

 

“She must be _really_ concerned about you,” Momo guesses as she takes out the medicine that Mina might need, places them next to the glass on the nightstand, and leaves the others inside the bag. “Okay, so food, tissues, medicine, and water. Do you need anything else before I leave?”

 

Mina shakes her head. “You’ve done more than enough, actually. Thank you, Momo.”

 

“It’s nothing,” Momo assures, giving Mina a tight-lipped smile before resuming, “Oh, and I’m sorry for coming here, by the way. Had I known you wanted some alone time with Chaeyoung, I wouldn’t have interrupted. I didn’t mean to ruin your night.”

 

“Hey, you didn’t ruin anything!” Mina opposes, reaching out to hold Momo’s hand. “I just really hate making other people worry.”

 

“I don’t know if I should believe that, but I hope someday you’ll consider me as your friend and not just part of ‘other people’ anymore,” Momo muses out loud, her eyes locked with Mina’s to emphasize her sincerity. “I mean, I know I’m just your fuck buddy, and we mostly do just the ‘fuck’ part, but I’m your buddy too, you know?”

 

Mina doesn’t know why her stomach twists in guilt when she knows she hasn’t done anything wrong. She’s just sticking to their agreement, after all, so she doesn’t understand she has to look down just so she doesn’t have to look at Momo anymore.

 

“Anyway, I’m gonna leave before I say anything stupider than that,” Momo chuckles shakily. She leans towards Mina, placing one hand on the bed and the other under Mina’s chin to tilt it upwards, and gives her a soft, lingering, chaste kiss on the lips before adding, “Get well soon, so I can give you a proper kiss, okay?”

 

“Okay,” Mina answers softly, and Momo gives her a satisfied smile and one last kiss on her forehead before walking out and closing the bedroom door behind her.

 

Instead of resting, Mina tosses and turns in her bed for over an hour, finding it hard to sleep. She convinces herself that it’s because she’s uncomfortably sick, even if she spends most of her time awake contemplating on whether she’s been treating the people in her life right or not. Chaeyoung, Momo, and Nayeon—they all cared about her enough to come and visit her, and yet she managed to push all of them away.

 

She pulls her blanket all the way up to cover her head and ignores the hollow, lonely feeling in her chest until she falls asleep.

 

* * *

 

The next day, she wakes up to a text from Chaeyoung asking if she’s okay, fifteen messages from Nayeon, and a stubborn, sleeping Momo on her couch.

 


	5. Pause

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always stuck with fluff, so it was so hard for me to write this. However, after procrastinating for 8371873412 years, here it is.
> 
> ... I'll see you guys next year! Please don't kill me.

**_ Four months ago _ **

 

Promises are made to be kept, not broken, so maybe it serves Mina right for breaking her promise to herself for the nth time.

 

_She won’t get herself get hurt again,_ she said. _She won’t fall in love again,_ she said. _She won’t ever let herself,_ she said.

 

And yet here she was, sitting at a bar, nursing a drink and her broken heart.

 

To be fair, this is only the fourth time she’s ever been heartbroken. Still, a promise is a promise, and when she told herself she shouldn’t get into a relationship for a while and focus on herself instead, she should have followed it.

 

Anyhow, Mina has learned her lesson now, or at least, she hopes so. Thus, no matter how hot the girl sitting beside her is, she tries not to look her way. No matter how tipsy she is at the moment and no matter how even more drunk she gets henceforth, she’s not gonna fall for the girl’s stare and her stunning side profile and her tight, black dress and—

 

“Miss?” The woman says, and Mina stiffens and keeps her eyes on her drink even if she’s pretty much certain that the girl is calling for her attention.

 

“Umm, miss?” She says again, a little louder this time, and _damn it_. All Mina wanted was a quiet night to end her horrific day, so why can’t life give her a freaking break?

 

Her frustration shows in the way she all but downs her drink in a matter of seconds, and when the stranger finally stops, Mina internally sighs, relieved that the girl got the damn message.

 

Except maybe—

 

“Miss—”

 

“What?!” Mina snaps, turning her head to face the other woman with a glare.

 

The stranger seems taken aback and shakily replies, “Th-that’s my drink.”

 

“What?” When the girl gestures towards the glass in her hand, Mina looks and at the same time, she also sees her own, empty glass on the counter. “Oh. _Oh._ I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s okay,” Momo laughs before the bartender places two more drinks in front of her. She thanks the bartender and turns back to Mina. “Here, have another.”

 

“No, thank you,” Mina politely declines as Momo protectively slides one of the glasses towards herself and the other towards Mina. “Please. I’m already embarrassed as it is.”

 

“I insist,” Momo asserts. “It seems like you had a pretty rough day. I’m Momo by the way.”

 

“Mina,” she briefly introduces herself back, making Momo smile.

 

“Well, Mina, I sure hope he was worth it,” Momo says as she puts her glass up.

 

It’s a little bothersome, how Momo plainly throws out that assumption like she’s got Mina all figured out. Still, Mina raises her drink as well, since it’s courtesy of Momo anyway, taking a long sip after clarifying, “ _She_ was.”

 

“Oh,” Momo nods in understanding. “Was _she_ the one?”

 

It’s safe to say that Mina is taken aback by the questions Momo’s been throwing at her because didn’t they just start talking a few moments ago? Just because she’s bought Mina a drink doesn’t mean she’s already entitled to hear Mina’s candid thoughts and feelings, but Momo looks at her expectantly, and Mina fails to find any sign of bad intentions in Momo’s eyes.

 

_This girl._

 

“Maybe,” Mina shrugs like it’s no bigger deal than it really is. She drinks again before continuing, “I’ll never know now, I guess. All that I knew for sure was that we were perfectly compatible, or at least that’s what I thought. We liked the same things, we had the same dreams, and we were great together.”

 

Instead of being empathetic, Momo snorts. “Sounds boring.”

 

There’s something about the way that Momo says it, maybe the way that she avoids Mina’s eyes while doing so, that makes Mina narrow her eyes in suspicion instead of getting offended. “Are you just saying that to make me feel better?”

 

“Yeah, okay, I’m honestly kinda jealous," Momo admits. "I don't know how you were able to find anything like that. It all sounds too good to be true."

 

“Considering we've broken up anyway, I guess it really was too good to be true,” Mina accepts with a sigh. “Screw this. I'm never gonna get into a relationship again.”

 

“Mhm, I bet that’s not the first time you told yourself that,” Momo replies cheekily.

 

Now, Mina can just deny all she wants, especially to a stranger, but she’s so tired and so done, so she lets out a frustrated groan. “God, why can’t I stop myself? It’s not like I don’t have friends!”

 

“I'd hate to sound crass especially since this is our first conversation, but the answer is obviously sex,” Momo answers so casually that Mina can’t help but grin.

 

“Ah, yes, there’s that,” Mina supposes. “But do I really have to be in a relationship to have sex?”

 

Mina doesn’t expect it, the way Momo gives her a full, unsubtle once over. Maybe the girl is surprised herself too, because Mina swears Momo’s cheeks get just a little redder when their gazes meet. As Mina raises an eyebrow and waits for an explanation, Momo just chuckles and answers, “No, I guess not.”

 

Mina's face still feels warm moments after Momo moves her gaze away and faces the counter, and she blames it on the damn alcohol. After all, she's not the type to talk up beautiful strangers in bars or have one night stands.

 

However, Momo's here with her shy smile and her pretty face and her perfect figure and the way she looks ethereal under the bar's dim light and—well, if the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else, that ‘someone else’ might as well be this attractive, right?

 

_Ah, screw it._

 

“Would _you_ have sex with me?”

 

Maybe Mina could have chosen a better time to say that, particularly not while Momo's in the middle of sipping her drink. Momo coughs a little, covering her mouth for a second, as she ponders on the question until finally—

 

“Well, maybe, but only if you're sober.”

 

Now, people have described Mina as a tease, countless times, and it seems as if she's found her match.

 

“Ah, you’re no fun.” Mina shakes her head before suggesting, “What if I just get you a lot more drunk?”

 

Momo shakes her head and chuckles at Mina’s antics, “I won’t let you.”

 

“Fine, suit yourself,” Mina concedes. However, it doesn’t take long before she sighs and considers a compromise. “Well, then, do you have a place where I can sober up?”

 

* * *

 

 

**_ Present day _ **

 

_Door’s open. Just come in when you get here._

 

It’s the first day since Mina’s cold and flu finally went away, and while she’s not so enthusiastic about going back to her real life (translation: going back to work), at least Momo is giving her something different to look forward to.

 

While she’s feeling excited more than anything else, Mina can’t help but narrow her eyes at Momo’s text as she alights her car to walk towards Momo’s building. It was rare for Momo to even invite Mina to her place these days. Ever since Chaeyoung moved out, they’ve always opted to meet at Mina’s more spacious flat, so when Momo asked her to come to her apartment instead, Mina couldn’t help but feel a little wary.

 

The text doesn’t help ease her suspicion either. As she walks towards Momo’s door, she can’t help but wonder if Momo has something up her sleeve. Maybe she’ll be lying on the sofa naked? Mina shakes her head, trying to get rid of that mental image, and tells herself that Momo can’t possibly be that… _extra_ , although she decides that she honestly wouldn’t mind it.

 

What she sees when she finally opens the door, however, is different from what she imagined. While Momo is in fact lying on the couch, she’s fully clothed, with her enormous dog lying on top of her, looking extremely comfortable as it rests her head on her owner’s chest.

 

“Mina? Is that you?” Momo calls out, having heard her door open, as she tries—albeit in vain—to see over her dog.

 

“Momo? Momo? Where are you, Momo?” Mina teasingly calls back as she looks around and pretends not to see the other girl.

 

“Haha, very funny,” Momo deadpans with a glare and slaps Mina’s thigh when the girl is finally within her reach.

 

In response, Mina moves a few inches away from the couch. “I came here to sleep with you, but I see Jana has already beaten me to it.”

 

“She’s been refusing to move for like an hour already,” Momo grumbles. “Ugh, why is she so heavy? I can’t even feel my thighs anymore.”

 

“Well then, maybe I should come back at a better time.”

 

“ _Or_ you can come here and kiss me until my dog takes the freaking hint and lets me breathe,” Momo suggests.

 

“Maybe,” Mina says as she pretends to decide between the two. It is only when Momo impatiently groans that she chuckles and walks closer to the couch. She leans her upper body towards Momo until their lips finally touch, and boy, did Mina miss this.

 

As she places a hand on the couch for support, Mina feels a hand behind her neck, pulling her in to kiss her deeper and making her lose sense of everything else but the lips against hers. She gets a little too into it that she doesn’t even notice the dog leave her place to settle down beside the couch until Momo sits up and pulls her onto her lap.

 

“Momo,” Mina manages to say in between kisses. “I think.” _Kiss._ “Jana.” _Kiss._ “Got.” _Kiss._ “The message.”

 

“I know,” Momo replies as she finally pulls back. “I missed you,” she adds before peppering Mina’s cheek and jawline with quick pecks.

 

As Momo begins kissing her neck, Mina hums before propositioning, “Bed?”

 

“Nah, let’s just stay here and let Jana watch,” Momo jokes before leaning in to meet Mina’s lips again, and the other girl giggles into their kiss. “Hold onto me, okay?” She adds, and Mina obediently tightens her arms around Momo’s neck and her legs around Momo’s waist. Momo then wraps one arm tightly around Mina’s waist and uses her other hand to hold onto one of Mina’s thighs as she stands from the couch and, with more ease than she expected, manages to carry Mina to her bedroom all without pulling away from Mina’s lips for more than a second.

 

When they finally reach the bed, Momo all but drops Mina onto it, and instead of crawling on top of her, Momo stays standing at the edge and asks, “Any requests?”

 

It’s become a thing, how Momo always asks Mina how she wants to be fucked, like she actually gives a damn on how Momo does it, when all that Mina always wants is _just_ to be fucked by Momo.

 

“Nope, just take off your fucking shirt already,” Mina replies eagerly and watches Momo comply. When Momo finally throws her shirt haphazardly to the floor, Mina asks, “How about you? Any requests?”

 

“Nope,” Momo answers in the same way as Mina did and crawls onto the bed until she’s hovering Mina with their gazes aligned and, “just _you_.”

 

Momo kisses her fully, deeply, _passionately,_ and surely, this is what she meant when she promised Mina she’ll kiss her properly once the girl gets better. It makes Mina’s chest burn in the best kind of painful way, but Mina hasn’t slept with Momo in days, and she needs _more_ , and she needs it _right now_.

 

She uses both hands to slide the bra straps down Momo’s shoulders before moving her right onto Momo’s back to reach the hook, but before she can undo them, she feels Momo’s hand move from her cheek to her arm, stopping her from taking the damn fabric off.

 

“Whoa, slow down,” Momo murmurs, moving her lips away from Mina’s and kisses her way towards Mina’s jaw. “I'm not going anywhere.”

****

“I thought you missed me.”

 

“I really did, that’s why I’m taking my time,” Momo argues against Mina’s neck before Mina’s hands find Momo’s shoulders, pushing her away.

 

“Okay, can you please stop doing that?” Mina suddenly snaps and sits up, making Momo startled before the girl mirrors Mina’s position.

 

“Stop doing what?”

 

“This… I don’t know.” Mina huffs. “Going all soft on me and everything.”

 

“Umm, okay, calm down,” Momo says slowly, seemingly still confused about Mina’s outburst. “If you wanted me to skip foreplay, all you had to do was say it.”

 

At that, Momo reaches for Mina’s arm, making the latter flinch and move a little further away.

 

“No, I’m not just talking about that,” Mina begins to explain. “I’m talking about you texting me, saying things that aren’t dirty and asking questions that aren’t about my schedule and when I’m free to fuck around. I’m talking about you coming to my house for something other than sex. I’m talking about you taking care of me when I got sick. I’m talking about you caring so much that you slept on my freaking couch when you used to slip away in the middle of the night just so we don’t have to sleep on the same bed after we fuck.”

 

As Mina ends her rant, Momo just lets out a humorless laugh. “That’s what all this is about? I already told you, Mina. I thought being friends with benefits meant we’re supposed to be friends.”

 

“But that friends part is what makes relationships like this complicated,” Mina argues. “Look, I like what we have right now and I’d hate for us to lose it by blurring the lines we set for ourselves.”

 

“Oh, okay,” Momo nods in understanding, but she looks at Mina so coldly that the girl almost shivers. “So what, you just want me to undress you, fuck you, and then be gone?”

 

“Yes,” Mina says, and she doesn’t get why her throat feels so tight that her voice almost breaks. “That’s exactly what I want.”

 

“Huh. Well, okay, then.”

 

And Momo kisses Mina, undresses Mina, touches Mina, _does_ Mina as perfectly as she always does—except the whole time, she doesn’t say a single word, doesn’t even look at Mina’s eyes, not even once, and Momo is doing everything right, but Mina feels like everything is so horribly _wrong_.

 

Her chest feels heavy, due to the lack of breath and maybe the lack of something else, when she collapses on Momo’s bed. The moment her back touches the covers, Momo stands up and walks towards her closet to take out a towel before starting to walk towards the bedroom door.

 

“Where are you going?” Mina asks while sitting up and using the sheets to cover her up.

 

“I’m gonna take a shower,” Momo replies curtly. “Can you please be gone before I’m done?”

 

_Fuck._

 

Mina grips the blanket around her tightly, feeling the need to say something, _anything_ , and calls out, “Momo, wait.”

 

Momo stops in her tracks, turning in her heels so she can face Mina fully and give her the stoniest stare Mina’s ever seen the girl show. “What?”

 

“I…” Mina starts, not knowing how to finish it because, _damn it, Mina you what?_ “I’ll call you.”

 

Momo scoffs.

 

“Whatever.”

 

* * *

 

 

**_ Four months ago _ **

 

“So do you do this often?” Mina asks, turning under the covers ever so slightly to look at the girl lying beside her.

 

“What, give women the best sex of their lives?”

 

“Buy women drinks then tell them stories from your childhood until they sober up _then_ give them the best sex of their lives,” Mina clarifies.

 

“Ah, what can I say? Sober consent is sexy.” Momo grins with a wink. “It might seem a bit counter-productive, but it worked on you, didn’t it?”

 

“Yeah, well, I _am_ naked under the sheets with you, am I not?”

 

Momo laughs and turns on her side as she asks in return, “How about you? Do you do this often?”

 

“What, let strangers lure me into their apartments?”

 

“Okay, first of all, you came here willingly—”

 

“Oh, I definitely _came_ here willingly, alright,” Mina retorts.

 

“—like going with me was _your_ idea, let me remind you,” Momo continues, ignoring Mina’s interrupting, “but I was actually talking about having one-night stands with hot girls.”

 

Mina shakes her head, but forgoes commenting on Momo’s little self-appreciating remark, and counters instead with, “Who says I’m not planning on sleeping with you again?”

 

With that, she throws the covers off of her, leaving her in all her naked glory, and walks around to pick her clothes up from the floor.

 

For a moment, Momo stays in a trance as she watches Mina slip back into her underwear, and when she returns back to reality, she asks, “Umm, okay, where are you going?”

 

“Home,” Mina answers simply as she effortlessly hops into her pants.

 

“Is this you trying to be casual?” Momo suspiciously asks as she keeps her eyes on Mina.

 

“Yeah, I’m doing pretty good for a first-timer, right?” Mina asks as she tries to ease the creases on her not-so-crisp-anymore white shirt before giving up and just buttoning it up. “But as you said yourself, ‘ _relationships are messy, all you need is booty._ ’”

 

“You’re never gonna let me live that down, are you?”

 

“Nope,” Mina confirms before retrieving her phone from the back pocket of her pants and throwing it onto the bed towards Momo. “Now, be a good girl, and give me your number.”

 

“… Say please.”

 

“Or, you know, don’t give me your number. I don’t care.” Mina shrugs in mocking indifference as she sits on the side of the bed with her back facing Momo in order to put her heels back on.

 

“Such a freaking tease,” Momo grumbles as she grabs the phone and types her number in. “You sure you’ll be safe? Where do you even live?”

 

“I’m a strong, independent, _sober_ woman, Momo,” Mina claims as Momo hands her the phone back. “I think I can get home by myself.”

 

Momo sits up, with one hand holding the blanket around herself and the other held up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Stay safe, and thank you for tonight.”

 

“Thank _you_ ,” Mina says back, and once she’s out of the room, she calls out, “I’ll call you!”

 

Before she turns away, she sees Momo smile.

 

“Can’t wait!”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to send me prompts and ruin my list of ships @ twitter.com/softswerver or up-for-anything-really.tumblr.com.


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